Thankfully, movie stardom, fatherhood and wealth have done little to alleviate the frustration and angst that perpetually furrow Ice Cube's brow and provide the spark for his potent rants. On the first installment of his long-awaited two-part album, Cube – never known to stray far from the gangsta-rap blueprint he helped create more than a decade ago – takes us on a characteristically grim ride through the ghetto streets, the projects and the penitentiary. Taking aim at his favorite targets (corrupt L.A. cops, nagging ex-girlfriends, greedy yes men), Cube manages to come off both visceral and polished, hardened and thoughtful, heartfelt and obnoxious.
War doesn't have its casualties. "Dr. Frankenstein," a halfhearted flashback to early-Nineties G funk, and the sluggish filler of "X-Bitches" would have been better left unrecorded. And some of the production is surprisingly uninspired, failing to keep pace with Cube's explosive energy. But the vibrant immediacy of "Extradition," a well-orchestrated track with an Eighties synth sound, and "3 Strikes You In," which takes California's controversial "three strikes" legislation to task, reminds us of the bewitching chemistry that put Compton on the map to begin with. "Fuck Dying," Cube's collaboration with hardcore tour mates Korn, is impressively volatile: Thundering moshpit riffs complement Don Mega's amped-up delivery. And while the focus on death, dead presidents and useless ho's is no shocker, that doesn't make the album any less engaging. Still, it will be interesting to see what's in store for us on the peaceful leg of the journey. (RS 801)
KATHRYN FARR
The Source (5/00, pp.212,214) - 3.5 mics out of 5 - "...He returns to his incendiary roots and delivers a strong album....Cube sounds invigorated here....quality hard-core music....He still reigns as one of hip-hop's most insightful - and important - artists."
Vibe (5/00, p.172) - "...Travels between gangster stylings and conscious rap....Ice Cube provides something for 'all' of his fans....VOL. 2 is a free-flowing smattering of styles..."
Rolling Stone (5/11/00, p.131) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Makes an argument for Cube's longevity....We see the badass spiritual resiliency that made Cube so worth imitating in the first place."
Q Magazine (5/00, p.110) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Ice Cube is still angry. At least he's trying to be....A forefather of gangsta rap....[He] sounds like an old man edging out of a young man's game. Deep down, he knows it..."
Entertainment Weekly (3/24/00, p.102) - "...rough-and-tumble celebrations of gangsta life....Cube's stern vocal presence dominates. No, movie stardom hasn't dulled his edge..." - Rating: B-
Wire (4/00, p.53) - "...[Cube] celebrates his irritation with industry hangers on, record company CEOs, and hustling young rappers....Production is fat and sassy with plenty of slick moves..."
CMJ (4/3/00, p.35) - "...Easily his dopest shit in years, ...PEACE takes to the dancefloor with the energy of landmark works such as KILL AT WILL and DEATH CERTIFICATE...
I started this gangsta shit," says Ice Cube at the opening of
War and Peace Vol. 2, "and this the motherfuckin' thanks I get?" We've heard similar whines from dozens of platinum rappers, but few would begrudge Ice Cube his righteous fury. It sucks being an elder statesman at thirty (even if you're also a Young Turk movie producer).
War and Peace Vol. 2, an improvement on 1998's scattershot
Vol. 1, makes an argument for Cube's longevity. Few other MCs feature madly recontextualized Shakespearean verse, as Cube does on "Pimp Homeo." Cube also shows his flair for drama on the cinematic, post-apocalyptic rant of "Mental Warfare," an intro to the unrepentantly pro-gangsta "24 Mo' Hours." There are fresh departures here, too: On the single "Until We Rich" (which features Krayzie Bone), Cube imbues his old-school rhyming with a contemporary R&B flavor and a defiant optimism: "Don't talk about death/I got too much life to live." In a line like that, we see the badass spiritual resiliency that made Cube so worth imitating in the first place. (RS 840)
NEVA CHONIN
